


Into You, That'll Have to Do

by TheNameIsErronBlack



Category: Teen Titans (Animated Series)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Gender Changes, F/M, Genderswapped BBxRae
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-09-02
Updated: 2017-08-03
Packaged: 2018-08-12 16:17:27
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 23
Words: 20,896
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7941031
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheNameIsErronBlack/pseuds/TheNameIsErronBlack
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Genderswapped AU BBxRae fluffiness.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> A friend of mine insisted I write a gender-swapped BBxRae story, and this is the result. Not sure how many chapters it's going to be right now. Everything else about the canon is the same. Also I based their physical appearances on the BB and Rae Genderbent fanart picture posted by the user 0Pandoras0tear0 on Deviantart.

Though he more than anyone understood the need to keep people at arm's length, Raven quite liked his new teammates. Robin was tenacious and perceptive despite his hot-headed nature, Starfire had a seemingly endless supply of optimism even if she could be a bit obtuse at times, and Cyborg served to balance everyone out. He was the rock upon which the team's cohesion was built. Overall, he was quite pleased with the way life was presently heading.

And then there was Gabriella Logan.

He had no Earthly idea why, but this girl, Beast Girl, treated him like they were attached at the hip. She was constantly pestering him with random inquiries about himself and touching him. She had absolutely zero sense of personal space. It was truly maddening.

"Whatcha doin', Rae-Rae?" The living pest hurled herself over the couch and pressed herself right up against Raven's side.

"Reading." He did his best to maintain his droll monotone in spite of his current predicament.

She gasped in facetious dispassion. "No! It can't be! Raven is reading!"

If pressed, Raven wouldn't be able to give an exact answer as to why he consistently found himself reading in the common room when Beast Girl invariably arrived to make him deeply regret his choice. Perhaps he secretly held some sort of masochistic desire to destroy as many brain cells as possible. Uninhibited by the nuisance beside him, he continued forth with his novel.

Pouting at not having her target's attention, Beast Girl propped her chin onto his shoulder and began a cursory examination of the text. "A hundred paces or so from the spot where Danglars and Caderousse sat sipping their wine-alright. I'm bored"

"It's hardly boring for those of us with triple digit IQs. In fact, The Count of Monte Cristo is one of the most celebrated books of the modern era."

Maintaining her position on Raven's shoulder, Beast Girl shifted her gaze directly to his eyes, a dash of pink decorating his cheeks. "Does it have, like, kung-fu, or something? Is Morpheus the main character?"

Though he would deny it vociferously and it was one of life's most puzzling mysteries, there was something about Beast Girl that unnerved Raven. Being an expert at maintaining his emotionless facade, he was able to stabilize his composure, for the most part, but there was no denying she held a certain ability to fluster him. Just when he thought he was establishing control of his emotions, Beast Girl sauntered into his life and caused many, many hours of meditation and introspection. Ever so subtly, he shifted his eyes so as to get a better look at her with his peripheral vision. For whatever reason, he had never really taken time to consider her appearance. Her hair. Green was hardly a typical hair color, but hers was long and flowing. It looked incredibly soft, as well, perfect for running one's fingers thro-

"No, the Greek god of dreams is not the central protagonist." Before having to suffer the mountain embarrassment that came with Beast Girl discovering that he was actually checking her out, he spat back a particularly acidic retort. She squinted at him in response, clearly confused.

"You've never seen The Matrix? Oh my God, you've never seen The Matrix! We're gonna have to do something about that."

Against all common sense, his eyes returned to Beast Girl's body, focusing in on her stomach. Did she really feel the need to wear such a revealing costume at all hours of the day? It was practically exercise cloth-

"Gotcha!" He paid dearly for his lack of attention as Beast Girl swiped her book right out of his hands in one swift move. "That's whatcha get, Rae-Rae." Her trademark toothy grin taunted him incessantly. "You can stare all you like, but it's gonna cost ya."

Despite his burning cheeks, Raven knew he would have to act fast to quell the situation before he completely lost what little semblance of sanity Beast Girl had not yet eroded. That little comment didn't help defuse the situation, either.

"Give it back."

"Watch The Matrix with me."

"That's never going to happen." His frustration became far more evident through his voice.

"Fine. I'll give it back, buuuuuuuuuut," She deliberately paused, causing Raven's heart rate to pick up even faster at the lack of certainty. "First, you have to give me a kiss."

Just as Raven's heart threatened to self-destruct, he was saved from damnation the ever-certain ring of his communicator. For the first time in his life, he was grateful for a supervillain's attack. Taking the opportunity while it presented itself, he sprinted for the exit with his devious teammate not far behind.

"This is _so_ not over."


	2. Chapter 2

Raven found himself in a bit of a predicament. Beast Girl had taken a somewhat serious injury in combat, which meant that he would have to heal her, but she acquired it defending him from a surprise attack from Cinderblock. Something about seeing her in that state made Raven's heart sink and his rancorous rage burst forth. In any case, he was in her debt, in more ways than one, meaning he would have to take the initiative to make things right.

 _Knockknockknock._ "Beast Girl?"

"Whooooo is it?" Raven rolled his eyes. She knew damn well who it was.

"Raven. Can I speak with you for a moment?"

A slight pause. "Sure. C'mon in."

Gripping the knob, Raven delicately made his way into the adjacent room, only to reel back in unparalleled horror at the sight before him: Beast Girl's bare back. She had no shirt on. Before he could make any more unfortunate discoveries, he nearly threw himself back behind the front door.

"B-Beast Girl!"

"What?" She nonchalantly remarked.

He took a moment to collect himself. She couldn't know she had this sort of power over him. "Could you please put some clothes on so we can talk?"

"Fine. Freakin' buzzkill."

Crossing his arms in preparation for her arrival, he mentally chanted his mantra to relax his nerves. Could she have intentionally done that? On the one hand, her level of social acumen and awareness was far below that of the average orangutan, but she also had a feverish passion for messing with him. Part of him wanted to hurl her out of a window, but, on the opposite end of the spectrum, there existed an equally powerful part of him that wanted to reach out and wrap his arms around her an-

"What's shakin', Rae?"

Raven whipped his head to find that, mercifully, Beast Girl was actually wearing a shirt. His eyes performed a lightning quick scan of the rest of her to make sure that she wasn't going to perform any other sort of deception.

"I have to heal you."

She shrugged. "Eh, it's fine. I heal fast. You owe me, though, and don't think I'm gonna forget it."

The way she was wearing her shirt made it impossible to determine if she had shorts on or not, which was both disconcerting and rather curious. She was a rather petite girl. Why exactly was her shirt so large?

Then the realization came to him like a punch from Cinderblock. It was one of his shirts.

"Why are you wearing that?"

She shot a subtle grin at him. "Could you please put some clothes on so we can talk?" Although he found the way she would sometimes imitate his voice rather endearing, Raven knew he had to maintain his focus and his anger. This was a major transgression, and he was not going to let her charm her way out of this.

"You're wearing my shirt."

She gazed down at it in mock surprise. "Really? I'm so sorry. Honest mistake."

He scowled at her in silence.

"Oh!" She perked up, methodically making her way to him, inch by inch. "You want it back. Right. Do you want me to give it to you right this second?"

His heart stopped. Time moved at a crawl.

"Or, better yet, maybe you can take it off me-"

With that, he was gone.

* * *

What possessed that girl to terrorize him? What was wrong with her? Perhaps a more pertinent query was why he tolerated her. There was something extremely peculiar about her. She took so much time out of her day to annoy him, yet he could never bring himself to truly dislike her. Her theft should've driven him into a thunderous rage, but perhaps it was her actions earlier in the day which softened his vociferous rancor. In spite of his constant eye-rolls at her goofy behavior, he acknowledged that one didn't have to be an empath to see that there existed a kind, compassionate, heroic part of her. Why did she put so much emphasis on hiding that from the rest of the world?

"Everything okay, Raven? Look a little freaked out."

Thankfully, it was Cyborg this time who chose to interrupt the peace. Raven needed a good dose of rationality.

"Yeah. I'm fine. Just Logan trying to get under my skin, as usual."

The robotic Titan gave a small laugh. "Will you two just drop the facade and hook up, already?"

Once again, heat protruded from his face. Raven shifted away from Cyborg in order to hide it.

"I'd sooner crawl through a mile of broken glass than ever consider 'hooking up' with that brute."

"If you say so. At the very least, it's pretty obvious that she's into you."

"Apparently everyone has completely lost it."

"C'mon, dude. She can barely keep her hands off you-"

"Okay, I've heard enough."

"-she always asks Robin if she can partner up with you on patrol-"

"Really, Cyborg-."

"-and I distinctly recall one time she commented on how much she just looooves how form-fitting your costume is and the way it shows off your ab-"

"Enough!"

The two were both physically shocked by the abrupt explosion of energy a few feet from where Cyborg was standing.

* * *

After profusely apologizing to Cyborg, (predictably, he was completely understanding with the situation) Raven concluded that some meditation would be prudent.

"She's nothing but an impudent, foolish girl, and your continued indulgence of this 'crush' is an embarrassment. You make me sick." Rage's response was rather predictable. Still, his mention of the word crush made Raven's heart skip a beat. That couldn't be true, could it?

"H-he's right. She's nice, and pretty, and she smells good. And you're ugly, and creepy, and weird." Timid did nothing to help ease the situation.

"Present analysis remains inconclusive as to the status of her true feelings. Her ability to mask her emotions nearly rivals yours. I would strongly recommend further research prior to any drastic deci-"

"Dude! C'mon!" Bravery hurled himself in front of Knowledge before he could conclude his dutiful analysis. "This girl lights up your life, and don't think I haven't seen the way your heart stops whenever she's so much as in the same zip code as you," He firmly dug his hands into Raven's shoulders. "Screw that! You are a straight baller, and you have to do this!"

"Raven? Can we talk?"

Abruptly returning the physical world always frazzled Raven. After his eyes jolted back and forth, he was able to wrap his mind around the fact that Beast Girl was at the door. Standing from his meditation, he inhaled deeply, mentally preparing himself to face her. He opened the door to find a curiously timid expression plastered on her face.

"Hey." She pitifully began.

"Hey."

A brief but painfully awkward silence overtook the world.

"I, uh, wanted to apologize. For before. You know, about the whole thing with your shirt," She brought it forth as a token of concession with a shy, tiny version of her toothy grin to supplement it. How dare she try to be cute at a time like this. That would in no way sway him. "But dinner's ready." He could never quite deduce why she so often informed him as to the status of the regularly scheduled dinner. He liked to think it was because she wanted an excuse to talk to her.

"I don't appreciate you scouring my clothing, but apology accepted."

"Awesome!" She immediately perked up, her ears pointing to the ceiling as the two made their way to food. "I know I'm pressing my luck now, but I gave you your book back and I still haven't gotten my kiss yet."

Raven responded with a deep sigh of resignation.

She shrugged. "It was worth a shot."


	3. Chapter 3

Like so many things in life, Beast Girl found Raven to be somewhat of a challenge. Getting Starfire to laugh at one of her jokes or provoking a reaction from Robin was almost too simple, but Raven was a totally different ballgame. His entire superhero persona was constructed around maintaining his emotional state, meaning that getting him to laugh or smile was like trying to dodge raindrops in a hurricane. However, on the extremely rare occasions when he would give a subtle, second-long grin as heat would rise to his face, Beast Girl felt like singing like a song-bird on a mountaintop. It was fleeting, but it was a high like no other, and she had no reservations about her addiction. It was easy to deduce even from the first day they met that he would be a bit of a tough nut to crack, and he was still a bit shy even now, but she would never quit in her quest to get him out of his shell. Him being kind of good-looking in that classically dark, mysterious way also helped served as more than sufficient motivation. He put up a front of timid modesty, but she knew there was a reason he wore that costume that fit rather snugly around his well-toned stomach. As the two made their way through the brightly lit halls of the tower towards food, she subtly glanced over at him, making no attempt to hide a brilliant smile.

"Hey, Rae, wanna help me count shoulders?"

As was so often the case, his eyebrow shot up and her stomach fluttered. That was her signal to go forward.

"One, two," Her hand delicately danced around her shoulders, smile increasing in magnitude. "Three," She enveloped his broad shoulder in her palm. The empath shivered at her touch.

"Four."

"Off, woman."

Milliseconds after the changeling had entrenched her arm around his neck, he robotically forced it away.

The light blush the prank prompted was completely worth risking vaporization. She clung to the high for dear life.

* * *

"I would assert that everything is, as they say, copacetic. His actions suggest that he quite appreciates your company."

Beast Girl shrugged, ears drooping. "It's just impossible to tell sometimes. He's like a hunky brick wall."

With a reassuring smile, the Tamarian took her hand. "Do not worry, Gabriella. I assure you that friend Raven carries a similar romantic affection for you. You fail to consider his superhuman ability to mask his emotions. Permit me to submit to you the idea that he is far too nervous around you to, as the human colloquialism dictates, make a move."

She gave a somewhat forced smile. "Thanks, Star."

The green Titan remained despondent. Some accused her of being a vacuous dullard, but Starfire could also be rather perceptive, especially when it came to the happiness of her friends. Perhaps a bit of third party intervention would be prudent, she thought.

* * *

"That was some good training today, Raven. The bad guys ain't gonna know what hit em'."

Once again, Beast Girl felt the insatiable urge to pester Raven. The team had concluded an extremely productive session of superhero training, and she just wanted to quickly recap it. Starfire had suggested that she pair up with Robin, a suggestion he was a bit too enthusiastic about indulging, while Beast Girl was to spar with Raven without either using their powers. Raven had managed to get the upper hand with an almost suspicious level of ease. Only now did he realize why she let him win so easily.

"If you're here to talk about what happened today, let me stop you right here."

Using her trademark athleticism, the changeling swiftly hopped over the couch and curled up against the Greek god statue given sentience next to her, being sure to press her face into the crook of his neck to make sure he could feel her breath.

"If you wanted me on my back so badly, you could've just as-."

"Beast Girl," It was her turn to experience a jolt of shock as Raven actually pushed her and squeezed his eyes shut. "Please shut up for one second."

A layer of perspiration began to develop on her palms and forehead. For the first time in her life, she was completely stunned at his deathly seriousness.

"I cannot take another second of your teasing, or your pestering, or your damn innuendos."

Ice coated her veins. Once again, her own stupidity broke another relationship.

"I'm just going to put this out there if only to get you off my back: Would you like to...do something? Just the two of us?"

Her brain and heart suddenly ceased functionality. Did Raven just ask her out? On a date? Was the sky falling? Would the Earth and waters soon open and consume humanity? Was she experiencing some sort of dehydration induced mirage?

"Oh, God," Raven dodged her scrutiny, clearly embarrassed. "I'm sorry. I..should've know-"

Only in that moment did Beast Girl finally realize that she had been sitting and gawking at the wonderful, beautiful boy before her with her mouth agape and her eyes bulging. "Yeah. Yeah. Yeah, no totally," Despite her debilitating anxiety, her base functions attempted to fire off some sort of response, regardless of coherence. "We could, like, go out for pizza, or something. Or, like, see a movie," Grammar was one of many things that Beast Girl's mind had dismissed. "Or we don't have to do that at all. But the answer to your question is: totally. I'm sorry, I'm just super excited. I'll shut up now." She concluded her miniature tirade by nearly cutting off Raven's air supply with a vice-like hug.

Several seconds later, Beast Girl was hurled from her state of pure bliss by Raven's voice. "Are you going to quit strangling me any time soon?"

"Nope."


	4. Chapter 4

A question common among superheroes was whether or not the ends justified the means. Typically, this conundrum was contextualized in whether death is a morally justifiable punishment for supervillains or the nature of unilateral action on the part of demigod-like figures. In Raven's case, however, he was still mentally debating about his discovery that Beast Girl was _actually_ into him. On the one hand, Starfire's revelation made him want to stand up and dance like a buffoon regardless of her being privy to his maniacal celebration. Conversely, it was somewhat disquieting that he, an empath, was unable to deduce that someone as goofy as Beast Girl could hide something of that magnitude from his abilities. She felt every emotion with such intensity, joviality in particular practically seeped off of her, but she also had a rather strange ability to hide certain things. Regardless, he was unabashedly happy that they had agreed to take the first tentative steps towards a relationship, deciding to spend the day in the park together to enjoy the simple pleasure of nature's radiant beauty. They found an empty bench with a great view, pressed up against each other, and figured they would spend maybe an hour or two and perhaps get some ice cream. (That part being Beast Girl's proposition) It was until Raven noticed the sun dipping down out of sight that he realized that nearly six hours had passed since the beginning of their date. Beast Girl's company seem to eat time away.

"Isn't it kinda nuts that this is the first time we've ever had, like, a real conversation?"

"I suppose I have to concede that you're not nearly as stupid as I once believed." Despite his joke, there was a great degree of truth embedded in that statement. He was well aware of her positive qualities, he wouldn't have taken such a liking to her if he hadn't, but he got to see a whole different side of her in a very short time span.

"Oh, ha ha, mister smarty pants over here. I know about things too, you know." She nestled her head onto his shoulder.

"Really? Like what? Quantum physics?"

After a few seconds of ponderous thought, Beast Girl's pout transformed into a devious grin as she shuffled into Raven's lap. "I'm psychic. The moment I met you, I could tell you were packing some serious heat in your pants."

Beast Girl could feel Raven's muscles enter a state of rigor mortis as his face burned.

"Don't be so modest, Rae. Girls like that kind of thing."

His crimson face somehow burned brighter. She let out a powerful laugh at his absolutely priceless reaction. "Relax, it's a joke, you big drip!" Only partially, she added as a mental addendum. "You're so serious that it's actually kind of cute. And it proves that I am the grandmaster of teasing you."

He sat there in sullen silence. Being totally unable to form a coherent thought in response to her subversion was something he was just going to learn to tolerate.

* * *

"So, whaddya think? Good first date?" Beast Girl held her hands behind her back and swayed back and forth.

Raven gave a small, conciliatory laugh, gazing at the floor to keep his focus off of how adorable she could be at certain instances. "Good first date."

Now she was biting her lip. It was almost as if she was giving a concentrated effort to destroy his willpower. Before she could attempt to charm him into something dangerous or insipid, he decided to put an end to the night's festivities. "Well, I will see you tom-"

"Can't we just, I don't know," He wondered if her diffidence was part of her scheming or if she was actually a bit nervous. "Cud-dle?"

The idea froze his innards. Certainly, he had fantasized about cuddling with Gabriella far more than he would ever like to reveal, but actually being able to reach out and grasp the opportunity completely froze him.

"Y-yes, I'd like that very much."

The grin on her face at his concession made Raven wonder if her mouth was going to fly off of her face.

* * *

If he wasn't properly acquainted with her, Raven thought one could easily mistake Beast Girl's room for a college dorm room. The clothing strewn about, the posters, she seemed to have a penchant for classic rock bands and movies featuring 'The Avengers', the pizza box that was at least two days old, it was a bit surreal. Then again, Raven knew better than anyone to not let people be defined by preconceived notions or stereotypes. Stretching his arms out, his eyes returned to the television screen. Beast Girl had decided to put on The Matrix, as he promised to watch it with her at some point, apparently, and although he found most science fiction films silly to the point of comedy, he found this one rather entertaining.

"I'm not going to lie, this wasn't a horrible choice, Logan."

No glib response.

"Logan?"

Shifting his gaze, he discovered, to his horror, that the changeling had fallen asleep curled up next to him. His heart froze in place.

" _Okay, this isn't that terrible,"_ He thought to himself. _"Just have to delicately shift her arms over my head an-"_

As he was putting his daring escape plan into action, Beast Girl let out a groggy, adorable groan as she tightened her grip on his neck. She obviously wanted him to stay.

Defeated, he slumped back down, the heat and comfort of Beast Girl's body completely quelling any objections he had left. The smile that returned to her face indicated that he made the correct decision.


	5. Chapter 5

"Mornin', gorgeous."

It was remarkably warm when Raven finally acclimated to the real world. Beast Girl seemed to be gripping onto him tighter than usual. As expected, she was gazing up at him.

"Good morning to you, too."

For some time, the two remained in that position, simply enjoying each others company.

"Raven," Beast Girl shattered the silence, shifting her eyes to meet his. Despite her usual attitude of joviality, there was an air of deathly seriousness that quickened Raven's heart rate. "I have something to tell you."

Smirking, he decided to give her a taste of her own medicine. "Miss confident over here."

"Hey, I can be serious," Her mouth arched to the side before returning to her more stern attitude. "I guess I just never really found the right time to tell you this, but it wouldn't be fair if I didn't tell you now."

He reflexively swallowed, having absolutely no idea of what would follow.

"You snore so freaking badly," She giggled before she could finish her thought. "But don't worry, it's super cute when you do it."

Predictably, he felt heat rise to his face. At least she found it endearing.

"And I love you."

The universe came to a grinding halt.

"I've just wanted to tell you that for a while, but we were just friends," Rather unusually, Raven noticed a slight dash of pink on her cheeks. "But, yeah, there it is. I've loved you since, like, forever, but I was just too terrified that you wouldn't accept it, or something sappy like that." She also made an active effort to avoid eye contact. After several seconds of complete silence and Beast Girl sucking in her lips, Raven's mind deduced that he should probably respond to her declaration.

"W-well, thank you, Beast Girl," His face was practically burning. "And, and I-I," The two whipped their focus to Beast Girl's now-decimated lamp, a victim of Raven's emotional instability. "Oh, God, I'm so, sorry. It's just that…" He cupped her cheeks in his hands to force her gaze. "I love you, too."

Immediately after Raven concluded his thought, Beast Girl crashed her lips against his, and the two began a painfully awkward, sloppy makeout session. Her mouth, he thought, was evidence that perfection did in fact exist in a flawed universe.

"Wow. The first time I've ever kissed a guy. Pretty great."

"Mmm. I've never kissed a guy before, so I'm glad to hear it."

She gave a tiny grin at his joke. "Good to know. Wanna make out again?"

He rolled his eyes fondly. "I guess. I don't really _want_ too, but I have no choice at this point."


	6. Chapter 6

Raven was having quite a day. Not only had the Titans managed to stop Mister Freeze, their very first A-Lister, according to Cyborg, but they even received backup from Batman. Being a superhero for multiple years, Raven held a deep reverence for the members of the Justice League, but he found Batman particularly fascinating. Perhaps it was his ability to compete with superhumans despite having no superpowers of his own or that he fashioned such a well-trained prodigy, but Raven carried a deep sense of respect for Gotham City’s formidable vigilante. He had even commended the Titans for expediently taking down Freeze with minimal collateral damage and no casualties, which was an excellent boost to Raven’s confidence.

Less fortifying, however, was Beast Girl, who had practically followed the Caped Crusader around like a lost puppy, pummeling him with inquiries about the status of his butler and supervillains. Even long after he had returned to continue his perpetual quest for justice in Gotham, she endlessly regaled Raven with details of her blatant obsession with him as the two had breakfast. 

“Ben Affleck was totally amazing, but he’s got nothing on the real deal,” She sighed contently, chin resting on her fist. “He’s a badass in ways that defy words. The human vocabulary is tragically limited.”

Raven shifted in his seat. Of course, Beast Girl was a self-proclaimed ‘fangirl’ of all things superhero, both real and fictional, but it was no secret that men and women across the planet would kill each other for a chance at romance with the Dark Knight. 

“Mmmhmm.” He noncommittally responded.

“Did you see when he was all like ‘it’s over, Freeze,” Her voice dropped by several octaves. “And then Mister Freeze was all like ‘you shall rue this day, Batman, and you as well, Titans!”

“I was there when it happened.” Regret washed over him. He completely gave away his hostility.

Beast Girl’s lips protruded and she squinted, obviously detecting that something had gone amiss. Setting down her drink, she stood up, methodically making her way to Raven’s adjacent seat. “Aww, is someone a wittle jealous?” She forcibly threw herself into Raven’s lap, shooting him a bright smile. 

“I am not jealo-” Before he could conclude is thought, she silenced him with a kiss that forced his head back.

“I like  _ you, _ you big dummy,” Cupping his cheeks in her hands, she forced him to make eye contact. “Yeah, Batman is cool, but I’d be the same way if Superman, Wonder Woman, The Flash, or Green Lantern showed up because they’re impossibly awesome,” She paused to consider the thought for a moment. “Okay, maybe not Green Lantern, but you get the point. I’m dating you because I like you. Plus, Batman is, like, thirty years older than me.”

Hearing that was extremely reassuring. Of course, Raven was an empath who prided himself on his ability to ‘get’ people’s emotions, but having her declare her feelings for him made his stomach dance pleasantly. A tiny smile tugged at his lips, though the high only lasted a moment as Beast Girl began to lift his shirt.

“What do you think you’re doing?” Heat rose to his face.

“You clearly don’t believe me, so I’m gonna show you.”

“By taking my shirt off?”

“Yes. Because you look like a marble statue with your shirt off.”

Despite the fact that Raven felt more comfortable with Beast Girl than perhaps anyone else on the planet, the thought of taking his shirt off in front of her terrified him. He was not about to humiliate himself in front of her like that. “This is highly inappropriate. What if I wasn’t attracted to yo-” It wa far too late. The words had already escaped. She beamed at him.

“Ah-ha. So you do find me attractive!” It was almost a yell. “You like me, and youuuu know it.” Beast Girl singsonged as she shook her head to and fro, mocking him. “I guess I have a thing for guys who act all dark and brooding but are sweet and innocent underneath all their armor.”

As she hoped, his cheeks burned an even brighter shade of pink and he began to heavily scrutinize the floor. “I am neither sweet nor innocent.”

“Keep telling yourself that, cutie.” She concluded the thought with a light kiss on his cheek.

___________________

The following morning, Raven awoke several hours ahead of schedule. He had to be ready before the rest of his comrades would return from the land of dreams. He was a man on a mission, and there would be no stopping him today. As unpredictable as a sunrise, he found Nightwing working himself to the bone in the team gym.

“Raven, you’re up early.” Apparently the identity and costume change brought with it a whole new attitude, as Dick was far more open and willing to joke around with his comrades. 

“Yeah. I, uh,” Clearly embarrassed, Raven looked to the equipment to find something for his eyes to focus on. “Dick, could I ask you a favor? Do you think you could help me out with, you know,” He toyed around with his fingers. “Help me out with improving my physical stature? We can’t exclusively rely on our superpowers.” 

He smirked. “Very true. This wouldn’t have anything to do with wanting to impress Gabriella, would it?”

Once again, the empath’s cheeks burned. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

This time he chuckled. “If you say so. It’s not like I was the same with Kori, or anything.”


	7. Chapter 7

"Come, Logan."

"Oh, Raven, I had no idea you could be so forward."

A classic roll of the eyes.

"Silence, please."

"Where did all this confidence come from? I like it."

"I have to remember that double entendres and innuendos are your bread and wat-"

Before he could conclude his derision, he was taken aback by the observation that the petite figure that had practically entrenched her arms around his waist was once again wearing an article of his clothing.

"Is that what kept you? Stealing one of my sweatshirts?"

"Yep," It was articulated as a mumble as she was presently nuzzling her face against his chest. "It's nice. And warm. And it smells like you. It's like you're always giving me a big hug."

"Don't smell me."

"Don't smell so wonderful."

She had him cornered there.

"Look at it this way, at least I'm wearing pants and underpants this time."

He was grateful that she was so intent on embedding her face in his abdomen that she was not privy to his head whipping to the side to reflexively dodge her scrutiny. It was both disquieting and strangely appealing. He would sooner sprint through a snowstorm without anything clothing than concede to it, but the idea of Beast Girl wearing only a shirt-HIS shirt-was-

"It appears as if you are developing a fleeting grasp of basic human decency and manners. Progress is progress, however minimal, I suppose." He found it best to actively discourage uncomfortable thoughts about Beast Girl, especially since that variety of fantasy could have some unfortunate, humiliating side effects, and he could already feel his heart rate steadily rising since she dropped that comment of hers. Self-control was his greatest weapon against inter-dimensional demons. There was no way he would let himself be bested simply because a pretty girl knew how to fluster him, no matter how much he adored her.

"Me Beast Girl," It was as if she was attempting to gargle a handful of gravel. "Me like use Raven firm chest as pillow."

"And your grammar has improved remarkably, as well. Keep it up, Logan."


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is not an erotic fic. I don't write smut, but there will be some potentially explicit material in the following chapters. Also expect a bit more angst than fluff this chapter.

Sighing contently at the warmth of the sentient heating device next to her, Beast Girl allowed her head to rest on Raven's broad shoulder, to which he let his head slump on top of hers. Using her peripheral vision, she detected a vague hint of a grin as the two watched the sun make its descent, both observations which made her heart soar. This was what he deserved. He felt such an overpowering urge to abstain from happiness, but seeing him joke, smile, and laugh to this degree was something like a dream. For the most part, their relationship had been going very, very well. He still hit her with a steady barrage of sarcastic comments about her innuendos and generally lackadaisical attitude, but the two of them were tighter than Raven's stomach, she thought.

"Oh, yeah, Doctor Strange is gonna be cool. You're gonna love it. And you have no choice but to watch it now."

"I'm not going to watch one of your dreadful superhero movies simply because it entails the mystic arts." Beast Girl had often attempted to cajole Raven into watching superhero movies with her, but her attempts became far more frequent since they started dating.

"Yeah, but this one is cool. It's Sherlock Holmes in a fight with Hannibal Lecter."

"What?"

"I just don't understand why you hate superhero movies so much given that you are a superhero."

"It's the same reason chefs don't cook themselves five star meals after a debilitating day of work."

Before she could present her witty retort, instinct informed her of something suspicious. Shifting her focus slightly, there was an ostensibly harmless girl moving tenuously towards their location. Her initial assumption that she was a supervillain of some sort was swiftly dismissed when she noted that the mystery girl was holding her phone like a child presenting a prized macaroni painting to a parent and making no effort to contain a face-wide grin. Beast Girl lightly elbowed Raven in the stomach to draw his attention.

"Can I help you?" Beast Girl inquired before the mystery woman could complete her journey. It was a bit more hostile than she preferred. Beast Girl felt that having such a large, adoring fanbase was one of the perks of superhero-dom. She found it curious that she had snapped at this stranger.

"Hi," The auburn haired, mid-twenty something almost sang it out. "You're Beast Girl and Raven, right?"

She clearly had a firm grasp of the self-evident. "Yes. Do you need something?" Again with the atypical coldness.

"I, uh, I'm Audrey, and I've been a fan of you guys since I was a kid. Can...Would it be cool if we took a picture?"

Her head snapped to attention. The night had been nearly perfect and now it was tarnished. Beast Girl had Raven all to herself as the background chorus of nature soothed her into a state of delirious bliss and her fingers idly danced across his chest, and from the deepest circle of the underworld came this petulant fangirl to sour her mood.

"Sorry, but we were just leaving. Emergency superhero stuff. Maybe next ti-

"Sure thing. We always have time for the good people of our city." Beast Girl whipped her gaze to Raven, squinting. Audrey the Petulant squealed.

"Thank you, thank you, thank you!" She practically skipped over to their bench, wrapping her arm around Raven's shoulder and bringing her phone to the front of her body to get the three of them in the shot. If Beast Girl wasn't angry before, that little move made her seriously wonder if she was going to spontaneous combust like she was in a Loony Toons sketch. Something primal stirred in her stomach. The all too familiar fever of powerlessness that consumed every rational instinct made its return. In the past, she would laugh whenever a squealing fangirl with a crush, of which he had many, would make Raven squirm and stutter, but buried underneath that was a perpetual desire to turn their faces into hamburger meat. She was forced to sit idly by while Raven was inundated by a plethora of offers from hundreds of vacuous d-

"And I don't want to be rude, but you two are absolutely adorable together." With her prize acquired, Audrey hustled away, laughing. It was the optimal decision, Beast Girl thought. If she so much as shifted her hand or leg an inch, that would be the last time she would ever be able to employ that extremity.

"Is everything okay?"

Several seconds passed. "Yes."

"You're scowling. That's my thing."

This could not stand. Another competitor just tried to intrude on her territory and escaped with all her limbs attached. Raven was her prince, her lover, her beautiful man, and the world would know that he belonged to her. To that end, she took a second to stare into his eyes. Dark and beautiful, they were almost too rich in color, like a painting, and the way they would just slightly glow under the night sky if one looked hard enough enchanted her. Unable to maintain her willpower for another moment, Beast Girl hurled herself towards him, crashing her lips against his and forcing his head back in surprise. Unsurprisingly, his body instantly leaned into her, eagerly reciprocating her plea for affection. Almost instinctively, her hands made their way to his neck, gladly exploring the various facets of his upper body. Raven, despite his primary reliance on his mystical powers, was in very good shape. All those years of Nightwing's exercise regime had paid off handsomely, she considered to herself, mildly amused at her pun. She craved his body. Right then and there. Their being in public didn't even mat-

"What? What's wrong?"

Raven pulled away with a gasp, eyes wide. Time refused to continue as Beast Girl was once again hypnotized by Raven's gorgeous eyes.

Stupid. Stupid, stupid, stupid. Raven had just only begun to feel a sense of self-control, and here came stupid, stupid, stupid Beast Girl. Hey, painfully shy Rae-Rae, let's make out in public! I'm sure you'll be totally cool with that. She squeezed her eyes shut and turned away.

"I'm sorry, Raven...please don't be angry with me."

Gripping his girlfriend by the chin, he forced eye contact. "I'm not angry at you, Gabriella, and you don't have to apologize to me. I…I just worry about you."

She responded with a miniature version of her toothy grin. Why was he so wonderful?

* * *

"You know I would love nothing more than to cuddle and watch your terrible movies all night, but I'm going to need far more than eight hours tonight."

She met his reassuring smile with a kiss. "G'night."

Raven waited until she was in her room before he started for his own. Really, this shouldn't have been a particularly surprising event. Raven always knew that despite his cocky front of perpetual joviality, Beast Girl carried a pain inside of her she kept hidden from everyone except Raven's abilities which occasionally manifested as vociferous rage that frightened even someone as experienced as him. The most troubling aspect of Beast Girl growling at him and nearly tearing his shirt off was that he knew exactly what brought it on: she was marking her territory.

He may have been wrong, but he was fairly certain she wanted to have sex with him.

* * *

"There is no debate. Be a man, step up, and do what you were born to do. She was practically begging for it!" Bravery, predictably, wanted to hurl himself into the darkness without objection.

"W-wait, Raven, just think about this for a second. You don't look like Ben Affleck yet. There's no way Beast Girl would ever accept you like this! And what if you knee her in the stomach or something like that?" Raven had made the unfortunate mistake of Googling the Hollywood Batman since Beast Girl offhandedly mentioned her liking for him and concluded that he wouldn't reveal himself to her until he was at that level of physicality. "Oh, man, what if you're not big enough for her? That might be the most humiliating thing ever, and that's saying something!" Timid pressed his hands to his face in shame. It was true that not being...sufficient enough for Beast Girl's standards did keep him up at night. That was one of his darkest, most embarrassing fears: not being man enough for her. Of course, he knew not to let stereotypes dictate his life, and Beast Girl seemed to like him well enough, but he wanted, no, _needed_ , to be someone worthy of her. She deserved it. Frustrated, he ran his hands through his hair and returned to the physical world. He was powerless against the anxiety stirring in his stomach. He realized that perhaps he subconsciously suppressed his blatantly obvious crush for Gabriella because he knew he was totally unworthy of her affection. They had been dating for several months, and the rampant cuddling, kissing, and hand-holding was truly blissful, but the thought of actually taking that big leap forward made Raven feel as if his heart was going to tear itself from his body in the name of self-preservation. She wanted more, but he couldn't fulfill her because he was too much of a wimp.

The only thing that assuaged his frustration was that Nightwing would be ready to work out in a few hours.

* * *

"Everything cool, Raven? Seemed to be going extra hard in the paint today."

Raven exhaled and took a seat having concluded his schedule. He had hoped that his frustration wouldn't be that evident. "Yeah. All good."

The detective smirked. "Trouble in paradise?"

He bit his tongue. Dick, despite his rigid attitude in the past, had become rather easy-going and amicable in recent years, but Raven was not one to gossip. Still, perhaps someone who had experience dating a fellow Titan could make for a good ear. "I just...I worry things are going a bit fast for my taste."

"I understand this might seem kind of radical, maybe even diabolical, but I it's the only way: Have you tried talking to her?"

He honestly hadn't considered it.

"And people say _I_ don't know people."

* * *

"Attack hug!"

Raven's heart was given a near fatal jolt as his girlfriend displayed her skills in tactical espionage with a surprise attack in which she ended up on his back with her legs and arms firmly wrapped around him. Raven decided that he would have to drag Beast Girl in tow if he was going to get anywhere. It was also quite the coincidence that she _just so happen_ to attack him after his post-workout shower, presumably in an attempt to ambush him while he was only covered in a towel. As fate would have it, he just so happen to bring a change of clothes before exiting.

"Good morning, my love." She gently whispered into his ear.

He didn't even bother suppressing his smile. "Morning."

To make up for last night, Raven scooped Beast Girl into his arms and set her down on his bed as if she was made of glass.

"I wanted to apologize. For real, this time," Beast Girl pursed her lips before she hit the surface. "I was wrong. I should've checked in with you about making out in such a public place. I never want you to feel like you can't trust me."

This was a predicament. Did she think that was why he halted their makeout session? "I don't understand. You think I was angry at you for kissing me in public? You mean you don't want to have sex with me?"

Beast Girl gave him a look as if he spontaneously sprouted a second head.

"Because, if you are ready, we can have sex."

Her eyes only widened.


	9. Chapter 9

"You want to have sex, right? That is what you want, yes?"

Beast Girl felt as if she was being hurled through space. It was like reality itself caved in on itself in a matter of moments. Here was Raven, nervous, fidgeting, blushing, adorable Raven, asking her if she wanted to have sex. Sure, she like to joke whenever he would experience spurts of confidence or vigor, but this was a whole new level of weird.

After several seconds without a response, his eyes darted away. "I'm sorry. I thought yesterday that you wanted to hav-"

Raven undoubtedly was anticipating a response, and sullen silence would almost certainly communicate the wrong answer. To prevent that, Beast Girl opted to silence him with a delicate kiss. His eyes widened and the tension in his body dissipated.

"You're not competing against anyone, Raven," Shifting away from his delirious face, she placed her palm on his cheek. His expression immediately softened. "Do you think I would be with you if I didn't think you were man enough for me?"

He was clearly not expecting that sort of rebuke. "How did you…" Shaking his head, he shuffled slightly closer to Beast Girl. "I know that we've only been dating for a portion of time, but I think it's fair to say that we're comfortable enough with each other and we're at the age where most people lose thei-."

"And I don't really give a shit about other people," She cut him off, this time with a curt verbal cut in favor of a kiss. "Raven, I would absolutely love to have sex with you, but I only want to do it if you feel you're absolutely ready, okay?" That was the undiluted truth. It wasn't that long ago when Raven would destroy a random object near him whenever she would so much as hold his hand or lightly graze his cheek with her lips, and it was fairly obvious to her that something of that magnitude would risk his safety. He didn't deserve that. A good girlfriend would shirk her base desires for the sake of her partner.

Still, there was no denying that his proposition had brought the conception to the forefront of her mind. And it was certainly an appealing one. The thought of seeing that body, tight, rippling, and gorgeous, made her salivate, but what truly drove her up a wall was seeing the same needful hunger in those dark, powerful eyes-

"I deeply apologize. I appear to have severely overestimated the status of our relationship." Still no eye contact.

Now, she at least felt content enough to smile. "I think I'm rubbing off on you and you're letting crappy high school drama movies freak you out." It was on her to cheer Raven's spirits, a task she was well versed in. To that end, she began to assail his neck with kisses, a tactic which emitted a light moan of surprise from the empath.

"I suppose now I'm obligated to a full day of cuddling with you in order to mollify my transgression." He managed to croak out as Beast Girl continued her assault.

"Yoooou got it."

"Are we really just going to stay in bed here? We have things to do."

"What could possibly be more important than me?"

"Fine."

* * *

"Can you at least stand up for a moment so I can make the bed? You've somehow managed to tear it to shreds."

Beast Girl wriggled around in the sheets, desperate to retain their bond. "You cannot separate us, villain!" She knew exactly what she was doing and hoped her smile was too evident. Seconds after her declaration of defiance, she found her body wrapped in the warm splendor of Raven's arms, her favorite location on Earth. A place where the threat of supervillains and the pangs or struggles of life were utterly immaterial, and all that remained was the pure bliss of Raven's love and her somersaulting stomach. They were always so warm it was almost as if temperature modification came with his power set.

"I still have to make the bed."

To reconcile their desires, Beast Girl wrapped her arms around Raven's neck, swung her body to his back, and secured her position on him by wrapping her legs around his torso.

"Thank you."

Beast Girl mewled, nuzzling her face into his shoulder.

* * *

After continuing their banquet of affection, Beast Girl conceded that the two in fact had important responsibilities, what with being the stalwart defenders of truth, justice, and innocence, and all that sort. One thing about their conversation that relieved her was that Raven was willing to relinquish his insecurity and doubts just for her. She knew right then and there that she had officially earned his trust. It made her feel special given that she was one of the few people on the planet to have earned that right. Beneath the rough exterior and legions of walls was the heart of a boy who love passionately and unconditionally. He had been willing to give his life for hers, but his presenting himself to her the way he had made her stomach tingle pleasantly, as if a microscopic firework show was taking place. He deserved to know how truly amazing he was and how he made her feel. As the two made their way to the common room, Beast Girl stalked her prey until she was all but certain his guard was weakened.

"Wa-pow!" A slap straight on his backside. Raven yelped and almost jumped.

"What in the name of everything sacred is wrong with you, woman?"

She shrugged. "You have a nice butt, Rae-Rae."

He blushed. "I'd strongly prefer if you didn't make comments about my backside."

"That's gonna be tough. There isn't a single part of you that I don't looooove."


	10. Chapter 10

It wasn't often that Beast Girl was relegated to a single location for more than a few minutes at a time. Her boundless energy was seemingly inexhaustible and she carried a perpetually insatiable desire to experience as much of the world as possible. The only true barrier to her was danger, and sometimes even that was not enough, but injury was something even she could not surpass. The Titans had managed to successfully apprehend an armored swordsman who preferred to be called 'The Revengeinator'. He barely registered as a challenge for the team, he went down in a single, well-timed punch from Nightwing after Cyborg had disabled his defenses, but he had managed to slice Beast Girl's stomach as she was performing her victory taunt. While Raven had to utilize every inch of his willpower not to tear the swordsman to tiny, tiny shreds one extremity at a time, he knew it ran against the values of superheroes and would do nothing to assuage the injury. The wound was far from fatal, as Cyborg had affirmed several times at Raven's request, but he decreed, much to Raven's displeasure, that Gabriella would do well to take a few days of rest and relaxation and that she would need at least six hours of solitude immediately. The wait was interminable. Raven tried mediation, but his emotions only pestered him about his neglecting of his injured girlfriend. He tried reading, but he found it impossible to focus on the dangers of fiction when there was so much in the real world. After five hours and fifty five minutes, he hustled over to the med bay to suffer through the final remnants of Cyborg's mandated period of recuperation. At the precise moment the clock struck eight-thirty six, he entered to find her with one leg on top of the other, intently staring at the television. She immediately perked up at his entrance.

"Hello, nurse. I'm ready for my physica-sorry." Her classic apology grin. He found it almost impossible to stay angry at her.

"You feeling okay?"

As an appropriate response to Raven's query, Beast Girl stuck one arm in the air, held the other over her heart, and stuck her tongue out. "Tell Raven I loooove herrr." Her voice got quieter as her mock death concluded.

He walked over to the bed and took her hand. "I'm serious, Gabriella. That guy could've seriously injured you."

Eyebrow raised and mouth arched to the side, she rebuked him. "Relax, Rae. I'm a superhero, too, you know," She overtook his hand. "I know I was a bit woozy, but you're pretty cute when you're pissed."

He let out a sigh, smiling. How was she so stalwart in spite of everything?

"Now, we have to do something. I can't stand when you're all worried and anxious about me."

Perhaps doing something fun would help get her mind off things. Plus, if she wanted it, he would comply. "I'm not watching another one of your horror films again. I don't care how much I adore you." Last week, Beast Girl insisted on taking Raven to a live screening of The Blair Witch Project at the independent theater on the opposite end of the city. He was all but certain she dragged him to it to satisfy her masochistic desire to see him squirm.

"Nope. You have to decide. We're doing what you want."

He was stunned at her subtle grin. For the duration of their relationship, Raven had been free to let Beast Girl decide how they spent their time together since she always seemed to take his feelings into account. He had been more than fine with the pizza, the movies, and the late-night walks through the city streets with their arms around each other, but now responsibility fell to him. Reflexively, his eyes darted away.

"C'mon. Anything. Well, almost."

He rubbed one arm with the other. "I guess there is one thing I'd like to do."

* * *

"This is so awesome. I'm amazed we didn't do this earlier."

Raven carried both pillows despite Beast Girl's insistence that she was not an invalid. Luckily, the temperature was perfect and the roof was a short flight away.

"Wow." Beast Girl marveled at the view. Raven had a similar reaction when he first found himself here at night. The lights of the city coupled with the glow of the moon and stars was almost hypnotic and instantly relieved any feelings of anxiety that plagued him. It made for an excellent meditation spot, and now, for whatever reason, he felt as if he would be coming here far more from now on.

"We have rather exceptional living quarters." He put his hands on her shoulders to set her down, which provoked a reaction of disgust from the changeling, who promptly hurled herself onto the pillow.

"You drive me mad." He took his place, and Gabriella instantly pressed herself up against him. For several minutes, the two simply enjoyed the night. That was another factor of their relationship that Raven loved. It seemed as if Beast Girl's mere presence was enough to relax him. He held his arms against her as if she was made of glass so as to not agitate her injury.

"Make a wish." She gently shattered the quiet.

"Don't tell me you believe in that nonsense."

"Nah. I just want to know what you would wish for."

He was fairly certain they both knew what he would say. "I think you know already know and you simply want to inflate your colossal ego, so you tell me."

She nuzzled her face into his chest. "My wish already came true."

That made his heart jump. As much as he hated it about himself, he did enjoy being complimented by his girlfriend. The silence was an obvious communication of anticipation.

Now she put her mouth right next to Raven's ear. "I got to see you jump when we watched Blair Witch." A flurry of giggles followed. The abrupt dopamine cutoff rattled Raven. Of course she would've used her clever wit to bait him. He rolled his eyes and tightened his grip on Beast Girl.

"This woman." He gave her a light kiss on the cheek.

"And I'm gonna sleep on your chest now. G'night." She sleepily croaked out.

Once Raven was certain his patient was sound asleep, he promptly scooped her up into his arms, taking a moment to enjoy the personification of resting innocence nestled against him, and began his descent to the tower proper.


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I bumped the rating for this story to T since this chapter is a bit intense. Again, it's not smut, but there is some potentially explicit content to follow. It's still lighthearted, but reader discretion is advised. Also, this if my first attempt at a scenario like this, so I would ask for a bit of leniency regarding its quality. However, please let me know any criticism/thoughts on it. Any type of feedback is deeply appreciated.
> 
> Unrelated, but I don't look down on people who read/write smut, if that came across in my earlier author's note, I'm just not particularly good/experienced at it. I think there is some truly wonderful smut on this site.

Today was the day.

He thought about it for quite some time, but he could never quite scrounge up the courage to follow through with it.

His complete lack of confidence didn't keep from fantasizing, however. He liked to imagine that he would walk in without a word, plant a firm, powerful kiss against Gabriella's lips, pick her up, and completely blow her expectations away. The timid boy would prove himself a capable man.

But today was the day. It was like getting a shot or confronting a supervillain; it was going to happen one way or the other.

For a superhero who risked his life on a daily basis, this was without question the most terrifying day of Raven's life.

* * *

He had never truly considered it, but there was no denying he kind of hated his appearance. The miniature legion of fangirls he had developed were more than happy to extol the virtues of his physical presentation, but the all-encompassing sense of self-loathing instilled in him at a tender age was far too powerful. The anxiety was mollified somewhat by Beast Girl's compliments, but he was certain that nothing could help him feel comfortable in his own skin. Looking at himself in the mirror and making the mental comparison to his physical stature months prior showed a tangible increase in muscle mass and overall form which helped boost his confidence somewhat. He was no longer the lanky, gawky teenager, but he still was not on par with the self-imposed standard of Ben Affleck. It was comforting that Beast Girl was a prime candidate for 'least vain human being on the planet', but she was exceptionally beautiful, inside and out, and deserved someone of commensurate value. Still, exercising today would only hamper his performance. Taking a breath to steady himself, he took one final glance at his reflection and made his way to Beast Girl.

As it so often did when he was filled with dread, Raven's mind sprinted through possibilities. What if he grabbed something sensitive too quickly or forcefully? What if he wasn't the big enough for her satisfaction? Could he injure her even further? He couldn't exactly have a sit-down with his parents on how to handle being an adult.

No, no, everything would be fine. Sure, his first time would most likely be awkward and sloppy, but it was crucial to remember that this was also Beast Girl's first time. In all probability, she was just as consumed by anxiety about her performance. They would both give it their all, and that would be enough.

" _She said it herself. She doesn't care about other people's stand-"_

Focusing on Beast Girl had the benefit of relieving him of some of his performance anxiety, but it presented an unintended consequence: his mind being drawn to her body. Raven respected women immensely, especially when he considered his two closest female friends could almost certainly kick his ass, and he loved everything about Beast Girl, her limitless kindness, her eternal optimism and sense of humor, her peerless bravery, but there was no denying that she was also, to use a phrase she employed, hotter than Satan's fireplace. Even before they were dating, he would often find himself having to actively tear his eyes away from checking her out. The image of her bare back when he walked in on her changing was one he revisited frequently, and then there was that one time he had been eyeing her during her pre-training stretches when they first became acquainted. Dear God, he had no idea how she could be so limbe-

_Thunk!_ "Yaow!"

He walked straight into a fucking wall!

"You good, Raven?"

Humiliated, he turned to face Cyborg. "Yep. All good."

Just as Cyborg's mouth opened, Raven sharply turned away and began to hustle towards Beast Girl before he could make another altruistic inquiry, filled with newfound purpose. _Of course_ Cyborg had to be there to see that.

* * *

"Oh hey! Mwa!" Beast Girl, elated to see her boyfriend, greeted him with a kiss. It was somewhat rare to receive such a present this early in the morning.

"Hey." He squeaked out. While normally she found the way Raven would fidget and toy with his hands when he was nervous extremely endearing, he was obviously upset about something.

Wrapping her arms around his neck, she continued. "Everything okay?"

After beginning to examine the fascinating world of Beast Girl's walls, he turned to face her, cheeks burning. "I'm ready."

An inquisitive eyebrow arched. "Ready toooooo?"

His face burned brighter.

Her eyes widened. "Oh!" What they had talked about some time ago returned to the forefront of her mind. Society dictated that guys would take the majority of the initiative regarding that level of a relationship, but Beast Girl thought it was fair to say that neither of them comfortably fit into the prototypical model of any facet of society, and she was completely fine with doing her fair share of the work. "You think you are?"

Sucking in his lips, he nodded.

Running her fingers through his hair, she couldn't help but smile at how cute he was. "I just don't want you to put an expectation on yourself, you know? This is our relationship, and we're just here to have fun and feel good, okay, babe?" She concluded with an even brighter smile and a pet name to encourage him. Raven would always rolls his eyes and make some sort of droll or sarcastic comment whenever she would call him that, but he couldn't hide how he loved her pet name for him.

She could already see the vague hint of a smile emerging on his face. It was a wonder what a modicum of encouragement could do to him. "I know, and I'm ready," His expression immediately switched to that of horror. "B-but only if you want. I don't want to force you. I want this to be completely consensual-"

"Rae…"

"-I want you to feel as comfortable as possible. Just because I'm a guy and you're a girl doesn't mean you have to feel pressured into anything-"

"Rae."

"The only thing I ask is that you-"

"Raven!"

To prevent him from rambling any further, Beast Girl was forced to yell directly in his face and clamp his shoulders with her hands. He looked at her like a scared puppy.

"It's cool," She concluded, somewhat exacerbated. "I would love to have sex with you."

He gave her yet another shy nod despite the complete severance of eye contact. The impetus to continue fell on her shoulders.

"How about I take my shirt off to start?" Witnessing Raven's reaction to something even as minor as seeing her in a bra was something Beast Girl found curiously exciting even though there existed a distinct possibility that he would faint on sight.

"I bet you've been thinking about this a lot." With that, her proper clothing had been relegated to the floor. Only now, almost completely exposed, did she realize that she was showing herself to him for the first time.

"So, what do you think? Do I look...good?" She had no Earthly clue as to what compelled her to ask that question.

After taking several seconds to gawk at her, mouth agape, Raven's eyes found themselves focused on her body with a laser-like intent. "You look beautiful." Once again, her heart soared.

"But...you would look even better without the clothing."

Now it was her turn for her eyes to bulge. This was unprecedented. Whatever shyness she held had completely dissipated.

* * *

Raven thought that, if his organs could actually process emotions, his heart would probably despise him. Gabriella was completely naked before him, and in the process of dragging him to her bed, using a flurry of kisses to completely destroy any potential resistance.

"Oh, please." He mumbled into her totally against his own willpower.

An instant later, her hand gripped something sensitive and his body betrayed his intentions: he let out a moan.

"Well, well, well," Horror gripped him. "What an eager boy we have here. It really doesn't take that much to get you excited, does it, baby?"

Damn her for being so right, and damn him for being so easy to break. All it took was seeing her in her undergarments, a few seconds of kissing, a pet name, and he was like putty in her hands.

"I am gonna need you to return the favor," She cupped his chin to gain his focus. "The fun can't really start until you're...you know."

Fidgeting somewhat to untangle him from his awkward position on her bed, he gripped the hem of his shirt, taking his sweet time in moving it to his head. The event horizon had been pierced.

"I was only partially joking when I said I knew you were packing some serious heat in your pants. I'm not psychic, but I always knew you had a huge-"

A parade was presently making it way through Raven's stomach, and Beast Girl's sudden silence didn't help relieve anything. She simply looked at him as if he had sprouted a second head. Reflexively, he wrapped his arms around his torso as if to pathetically shield himself from her scrutiny.

* * *

Holy.

Fucking.

Shit.

Beast Girl did not like to consider herself a vain person, and she loved Raven unconditionally, but she couldn't help but marvel at him. She noted the general increase in Raven's muscle mass since they had begun dating, but now he strongly resembled a statue of a Greek god given sentience. His arms looked as if they were being used to store modestly sized bowling balls, and that stomach! Have mercy!

"Gabriella?"

"Hmm?" Her gaze whipped up to the location of the disturbance. He was clearly waiting for some indication that his physicality met her standards.

"You don't have to change yourself for me, Raven. I thought you were hot before," She planted yet another gentle kiss on that pretty little mouth of his. "But this is nice, too." Her hands forced themselves onto his chest, investigating his newfound swoleness. He let out an almost undetectable whimper at her touch.

"Just so you know, I like everything I do with you," She somehow found the composure to speak as her hands danced around his beautiful abs. "There are some less intensive alternatives that we could try if you don't want to jump straight to the big one. And I want you to know that this is all up to you. If things go too fast or get too intense, you let me know, okay, babe?"

He gave a final, dutiful nod.

"Okay. I love you." With that, her lips went for his neck. That would _really_ melt him.

* * *

"Good afternoon, babe." She once again greeted him with a kiss.

His brow furrowed and his face scrunched in response to the somewhat rude awakening. He was so expressive. "What time is it?"

"Four thirty."

"Did we really sleep for eight hours?"

"Mmmhmm."

"Goodness. I apologize."

"Nah, it's cool. Time for recuperation is critical after bouts of extremely strenuous physical activity, dontcha think?" It was kind of cute how Raven had fallen asleep almost immediately following the conclusion of their session. She couldn't help but curl up next to him to do the same not long after; he really took the fight out of her, and she obviously returned the favor.

"What could be better?" He pulled her closer. She truly loved being his.


	12. Chapter 12

" _Just have to-dammit."_

"Are you stuck, or showing off?"

Despite the prolonged nap, Raven found actions as arduous as walking and balancing oneself exceptionally difficult. Attempting to put on a shirt was also a Herculean effort.

"You try standing and see how you compare."

After a few more seconds of fidgeting and nearly toppling over, his only saving grace being the nightstand, he at least had a shirt on. There still was the matter of putting on pants, but progress was being made.

"On behalf of heterosexual women everywhere, I implore you to renounce clothing."

Him being comfortable enough with Beast Girl to be naked in front of her was positively horrifying, but now it was as if it didn't even matter. His heart wasn't racing, his veins weren't freezing, his face wasn't burning, all was right with the world.

"I'm dehydrated. Do you want anything?" Raven inquired as he, much to Beast Girl's chagrin, slid into pants.

"That big lump between your legs." Beast Girl nonchalantly responded.

Now _that_ made him blush. He was grateful he had an excuse to turn away.

* * *

Cyborg couldn't quite place it, but something was definitely going on with Raven. Earlier, he looked positively miserable. His back was arched, his hands were glued to his pockets, and his facial expression conveyed the dread of a death-row inmate. Now, he proffered a subtle smile, which for anyone else would manifest as a massive grin, and almost appeared to be glowing, if human beings could do such a thing. All things considered, Cyborg wasn't sure which mood was more worrisome.

"Everything okay, Raven?"

The empath turned to face him. "Oh, yeah. Everything is ay-okay." Now Raven was nodding, eyebrows raised. He practically skipped to the refrigerator.

Nightwing appeared to have made a similar extrapolation. "Someone's in a good mood."

With his loot in hand, he hurled the refrigerator door shut and nearly spun around to face the Titans. "What can I say? It's a beautiful day, we have our health, and we have each other. Can't really ask for much more. I'm just feelin' good. If that's a crime, put me straight away." With that, he began his march back.

"I believe that Robert's relationship with Gabriella has been most beneficial for the both of them. He is in state's of significant exuberance far more frequently, particularly in her presence." Starfire mused after Raven's departure.

Nightwing squinted for a moment. "Mmm."

"What?" Cyborg knew "mmm" meant "I've figured it out and I'm not going to tell you".

"Nothing. He is much happier around her." Now he was also wearing a subtle, knowing grin.

The combination made his face scrunch. _Something_ was definitely going on.

* * *

If Raven was hard-of-hearing, he would've sworn Beast Girl was purring. She was certainly curled up like a cat next to him. "That was awesome. Are you sure you're a first-timer?" She mumbled, more so into his chest than him.

Her praise of his performance was a solid boost to his confidence. It made his stomach flutter pleasantly. "Don't sell yourself short. You were pretty fantastic, too." He concluded with a kiss, causing Beast Girl to sigh contently.

For several minutes, the two simply remained in sullen silence. In Raven's eyes, all was right with the world. From the outset, he had been plagued by a gnawing anxiety that something would go wrong and Beast Girl would grow to despise him, but things had been going swimmingly. He wanted to sing from the roof of the tower to the world; the most beautiful girl in history was in love with him. In spite of all his perpetual anxiety, self-loathing, and fear of what the future would hold, that simple truth triumphed over all.

"I love you, Gabriella."

And with that, everything came to a halt. While he had successfully declared his love for her following their first date, it had been marred by his timid stuttering and his powers going haywire, but now it was an absolute declaration. His stomach wasn't tying itself into a knot, he hadn't destroyed any adjacent object, and his voice hadn't skipped a beat or jumped an octave. Beast Girl turned to gaze at him, mouth agape. He found her rapidly proliferating grin extremely adorable.

"I think it's appropr-" Raven's subsequent deceleration was cut off by a powerful kiss that made his eyes widen and hurled his head back into the pillow. Her mouth tasted like strawberries and the power of her kiss was intoxicating.

"I love you, too, Robert."

Her unflinching gaze made his face burn. Raven concluded that perhaps he still had some work to do in that area of himself.


	13. Chapter 13

"Hey-uh-Beast Girl, can I tell you something?"

She turned with her ever-radiant smile. "You just did."

"I'm being serious."

She plopped herself next to him. "Of course you can. What did you have for breakfast this morning, what stupid thing did you do today, did you find a worryingly long hair in your armpit again."

In an attempt to preemptively apologize for Raven's rapidly proliferating scowl, Beast Girl wrapped her arms around his neck and gave him a light peck on the cheek. "Go for it."

Raven gave a light sigh before continuing. "Beast Girl...I wanted to thank you for putting up with me. I know it certainly couldn't have been easy to be friendly with me, what with all my bitter acrimony and emotional distance and all that. If I can be totally honest, I developed a liking for you long before we started dating. A lot of times, the knowledge that I would be able to see you would brighten my mood whenever I was anxious or worried about something, but I guess I wanted to keep you at arm's length since I postulated that someone like you would never even consider someone like me in that regard," He gingerly gripped her chin to force eye contact. "I really, truly care for you, Beast Girl. I know it's difficult for me to express that a lot, and I know even now I can come off as moody and distant, but it's true."

The way Beast Girl's lips parted slightly as she was enraptured by Raven's speech was incredibly adorable. Realizing that he had spent the past several seconds gawking at her, he quickly darted his eyes. "Uh, that's it. That's what I wanted to say."

Beast Girl squeezed him tighter. "Thank you, Raven. You might think that you don't really express yourself a lot, but I love when you're a little flustered and a little shy with me. When you look away when we make eye contact, or blush when we kiss, it just makes me want to pounce on you. The way you're still as excited to be with me now as you were when we started dating...it just makes me feel...adored. Revered. You really know how to make a girl feel special."

Seeing Raven's cheeks flush, she pressed on. "And, let's be serious for a minute here, babe, I know you're a total softie under all that armor. Even when we first met, you could _never_ resist my charms."

Now he had his hand covering his mouth. "Don't make me throw you into the Pacific Ocean, Logan."

Another light kiss on his cheek. "Yeah, yeah. Just like all those other times. Your threats are completely vacuous."


	14. Chapter 14

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Based on a true story

"No. Absolutely not. I have put up with your nonsense for far too long, and I draw the line here." Raven crossed his arms and hurled his sharpest scowl at Beast Girl.

"But…" Beast Girl felt her heart plummet. "I love you, Raven."

Her puppy dog eyes and pouting longer had any power of him. Despite his assertion to the contrary. Raven's patience with Beast Girl was not beyond erosion. "I'm done with you, Beast Girl."

Though she had never initiated it, Beast Girl often considered faux-tears in order to cajole Raven into something, but now she feared that she might actually do it against her willpower.

"If you don't, what am I going to do?"

He squinted at her. "I am not watching the Godforsaken Power Rangers movie. I've been forced to watch five million superhero movies with you in the past few months, and I eclipsed the end of my proverbial rope ages ago."

"Awwww, babe, you're so mean," She scooted over on the couch and pressed herself right up against him. "Plllleeeaaasseee?"

"I've given it some thought, and I've concluded that my personal vision of the lowest concentric circle of Hell is a world in which all celluloid on Earth has been supplanted exclusively by your taste in film."

"Well, if you don't, mister Thesaurus, I guess I'm gonna have to clamp down on your rather lovely neck." Before he could protest, Beast Girl wrapped her arms around Raven's neck, secured her legs around his waist, and brought her mouth to the spot right below his jaw. It was one of her go-to tactics because kissing his neck elicited an ever-so-delicious hum from his mouth.

"You will not shake my resolve." He tensed up in an attempt to keep quiet.

She let out a frustrated groan. "Awwwbabe," She muffled into his neck. "Iroveyou. C'mooooonnnn!" Undeterred, she continued her assault on his neck.

Sensing that Beast Girl would soon destroy his resolve utilizing his sensitive neck, Raven gently pushed her off. "That's not going to work today."

Maintaining her spot on Raven's lap, her favorite place on the planet, she quickly decided that she would have to change up her plan. Physical affection became so frequent that he must've developed a mild resistance to it.

"I'm sorry, Rae, I just love how beautiful you are." The immediate softening of his expression told her that she was on the right path.

"R-really?" His cheeks immediately brightened. Despite her best efforts, Raven still wasn't used to the whole 'unconditional affection' thing. His shock made her laugh.

"Yes, dumb-dumb, I mean it. You have the most gorgeous eyes, the prettiest smile which I never get to see as much as I want, and the cutest nose. I just want to kiss your stupidly adorable face all the freakin' time." There really could be no exaggeration with how amazing Raven looked physically. It was true that she adored how sweet and caring he was, but there was no denying that he was the essential template for 'tall, dark, and handsome'. He was fascinating to look at.

"Gah- don't distract me, babe, I'm trying to reach a point here," She concluded her diatribe with a light peck on his lips. "The point is: I love every part of you. From your amazingly sexy hair all the way to your gorgeous booty."

Raven rolled his eyes and offered a sly grin. "You are revolting."

Now was the time to strike. "Rae-Rae, your ass is divine."

"I'll watch your stupid movie if you never make another comment about my body ever again."

"Deal!"

* * *

"This is the last of your films I'll be watching. Savor it." Raven would never admit it, but one of his favorite things in life was walking through the city at night with Beast Girl, even if their destination was yet another two hours of some costumed knucklehead fighting some other costumed knucklehead for some vacuous justification.

"We'll see about that, sweetie." She concluded the thought with a slap on Raven's backside before returning his arm to his waist. A fit of laughter followed his silence. "I've been waiting to do that for ages!"

"I really don't know what I see in you."

"Aww, did I hurt your butt?"

"You truly are a conniving little monster."

"Yes, but I am _your_ conniving little monster."


	15. Chapter 15

"Fine, Rae. You go off and do your thing that's so super-duper important that you leave me here with my cough, fever, headache, hundred and four temperature, cold, and tiredness. I mean, all I wanna do is eat some delicious food, cuddle up in your big, strong, furnace-like arms, and fall asleep watching movies-"

"Beast Girl, I promised Nightwing that I would-"

"BUT ALAS! You choose to leave your poor, sick, defenseless girlfriend all alone. I guess I'll have to get my other boyfriend to take care of me. I'm sure he would think I'm worth it. He has the most dashing violet eyes."

Raven rolled his dashing eyes and gave an exasperated sigh. Truthfully, he did plan on taking care of his unusually sick girlfriend, he just liked giving her a taste of her own medicine. Did he just make a pun?

"Fiiiiiiine." He drolled, before being squeezed by Beast Girl with far greater strength than he assumed a girl of such stature in her condition could use.

"Mmm, you're all mine today, even more than usual. Just the thought of spending the day with you is already making me feel better."

Raven shyly dodged her scrutiny at such a compliment. "Glad to have such an effect."

"Sooo, if you're going to be taking care of me, do you think you could go get me some chicken soup and orange juice? Honey? Babe?"

Realizing that he had just been manipulated, Raven offered a sarcastic 'why me?' to no one in particular.

"Because you're so good at it, and you're the best ever, and I love you, pretty please?"

* * *

Raven returned from the pharmacy with enough Tylenol, cough drops, cough syrup, orange juice, ginger ale, chicken soup, and Advil to supply a medium-sized hospital for several days. Now, in a testament to the adage that 'life leads one to strange places', he was making soup for Beast Girl. Given that the most complex thing he had ever cooked was a grilled cheese sandwich, soup seemed like a bit of a daunting challenge, but nothing beyond the range of his abilities.

"Unless my eyes have become masters of subterfuge, I believe Raven is cooking." Starfire greeted the empath as he concocted his culinary masterwork. In that moment, he was grateful the roles were not reversed; Starfire's cooking could be fatal even if one was already not in dire conditions.

"I'm hoping my skill at preheating soup is sufficient enough not to destroy her tastebuds."

Witnessing Raven's cornucopia of loot seemed to impress Starfire. "I must say, Raven, Beast Girl has had quite a positive effect on you. When we first encountered one another, I did not believe you would commit to such a gesture of kindness for anyone, but you have truly proven me wrong."

He was once again struck by the compliment. "Thank you, Star. "

"But it is not just that. Since you two copulated, you have been more open to conversation, you smile and laugh with a much greater degree of frequency and magnitude, and your level of timidity has decreased dramatically. And you have a demonstrably similar effect on friend Beast Girl. Your relationship has my approval."

Thinking over Starfire's words in her mind, they carried a great deal of truth. The world did indeed seem like a much brighter place with Beast Girl occupying it. And the idea that he did that for her? Well, that was pretty spectacular in its own respect.

"Thanks, Star. Really, it means a lot."

She flashed her brilliant smile. "Think nothing of it. And I am quite happy that I do not have to enforce my promise to Beast Girl."

Starfire was nothing if not capable of killing a good mood. "What promise?"

Still brandishing her classic ear-to-ear grin, she continued. "I promised Beast Girl that if you were anything less than spectacular to her, we would have a talk, talk in this case used as a thinly-disguised colloquialism referring to a violent encounter. However, I knew it was entirely pointless, as I could detect how much you cared for her."

"Wow...thank you, Star." Raven responded, failing to hide a smile of his own.

* * *

Making his way back to Beast Girl's room, Raven found he moved with a spring in his step. Something about an outside party making it known that Gabriella enjoyed being with him as much as he enjoyed being with her made his stomach dance pleasantly. It wasn't as if he didn't have a germ of an idea about the nature of feelings, being an empath and all, but…

Only now recognizing his folly, Raven stopped dead in his tracks.

"Oh, goodness, another damn pun," He chastised himself. "Gabriella is _really_ rubbing off on me." _  
_


	16. Chapter 16

Everything ached.

That was the operative word in Beast Girl's mind. It had been an absolutely excruciating day. First, the team had a collective day of intense training punctuated by a supervillain attack downtown, then Beast Girl had to transform in and out of her various forms of existence to help clean things up, and, to top it all off, Starfire had insisted on movie night as a method of revitalizing the team's spirits. Apparently, Beast Girl had fallen asleep in the midst of the screening, as she awoke in Raven's room, suctioned cupped to the empath's stomach.

"G'day starshine." Pressing her hands against his body, her attempt at elevating herself came to a swift end as she plummeted back into Raven's chest after only reaching a few inches. "Ooooh, I am tired. But we gotta get up." She mumbled into Raven.

Shifting slightly to better accommodate his girlfriend, Raven began running his fingers though Gabriella's hair. "You need your rest. You're not Superman, you know."

She let out a sigh. "I know. I just see you here lookin' all cute and sleepy and cuddly, and I know I'm going to be in this bed all day because you're so warm and cozy and you insist on keeping me here. We gotta get up."

Utilizing the remnants of her meager energy supply, Beast Girl turned to face Raven since she wanted to gauge his reaction to the following statement, but found herself squinting as per her eye's unfortunate encounter with the blinding power of the sun. "I see how it is. You want me all ready to go for later tonight, eh? What a naughty boy. I always knew that whole sweet and innocent thing is just an act."

As she hoped, Raven immediately darted his gaze away as heat rose to his face. "I-I-I'm sorry, Beast Girl, I didn't mean to-"

Beast Girl slowly etched forward and silenced him with a gentle kiss. "Relax, babe, I love doin' it with you. I get to watch you crumble, and I realllly love your breathing and cute little moans."

The burning on Raven's cheeks mirrored the gleam of the sun. It was Beast Girl's ambrosia.

"But, for real, we gotta get-hurk!" Her subsequent attempt at escape was thwarted by Raven employing his powers to secure her to him.

"You're not going anywhere, Logan. I worry about you far too much to-yaow!" Keeping in mind how much Raven dreaded the cold, Beast Girl concluded that placing her cold feet on his chest would be enough to get him out of bed. Her assertion was proven correct and then some as Raven reeled away from her and plummeted out of bed.

"Oh, look at that, you're up! Yay!" Now that there was no human radiator to keep her warm, getting out of bed was far less of an arduous task. Plus, the sight of a conquered Raven was far too precious to pass up.


	17. Chapter 17

Being a superhero often precluded sleep, but Beast Girl believed she had developed an ability to subconsciously determine when to wake up and when to remain asleep when things were out and about. This skill also extended to her sixth sense regarding Raven. Despite her lackadaisical attitude, she was quite perceptive when it came to emotions, especially when it came to her boyfriend. Something stirred inside of her and she found herself groggy on Raven's bed, her hands holding up the rest of her frame.

"Raven…" Her voice, like the rest of her, was still acclimating to the real world, but she immediately sprang to life once she saw what was happening.

"Raven, are you...are you crying?" He was far too composed and reserved after years of building fences to let the tears flow freely, but Raven was clearly distraught. Beast Girl immediately scooted over to ensconce him in her arms. "Baby, you're crying!"

He dodged her gaze and cleared his throat. "No, I'm fine. Go back to sleep."

It would obviously take a bit of work to get him to open up. To that end, she remained stalwart in her position, squeezing him tighter. "Please talk to me, Raven. I'm always here for you." Beast Girl climbed up to face him.

A deep breath, and Raven began. "I had a dream. Me and you were at some supermarket, and my father appeared out of thin air and grabbed you. I called out for you, then he grabbed me," He was clearly choking up as he recounted the tale. "And I...I'm sorry I couldn't prote-"

Before he could complete the thought, Beast Girl employed her go to tactic when distracting or silence Raven: she pressed a gentle, tender kiss to his lips. She was met with a timid lean-in from the empath as his muscles relaxed.

"It was just a dream, Raven," She ran her fingers through his hair to relax him further. "Your dad can't hurt either of us anymore, and if he ever comes back, the five of us will beat him again, like we always have. I know you care about me, but I can take care of myself, and it would take a lot more than getting grabbed to take me out."

He anxiously nodded.

"We don't have to go back to sleep if you don't wanna. We could just put on Netflix and cuddle."

The brief pep talk seemed to assuage his anxiety and return the more jovial, snarky Raven to the surface, as a tiny, shy smile emerged to meet Beast Girl. "I suppose I wouldn't mind something silly, for once."

* * *

Despite struggling to stay awake, a particularly difficult task considering how warm and cozy Raven was, Beast Girl remained resolute in her quest to stay conscious for Raven.

"Rae-Rae, you know you can talk to me about anything, right? I know I like to tease you a little too much sometimes, but love is pretty much all about automatically caring about someone, even the kinda crappy parts."

"I know, and I truly appreciate it. It's just…" He again shyly looked away from the screen as she turned to face him. "Just…"

"Just what?"

"That I...like all your teasing."

Beast Girl was certain that Raven didn't totally despise all her humor, but having official confirmation from the man himself made her heart soar. " _Really?_ "

"Not _that_ much, but...yes, I think it's...cute."

She secured her grip on his neck, almost suffocating him. "I always knew. But just so you know, I'm pretty much your personal cheerleader, Rae-Rae. Well, minus the uniform and the pompoms, but I would totally rock them if you wanted me to."

Her peripheral vision detected a sly smile on Raven's face. "Now that would be something."

Now was the time to attack. "Ooooohh, are you blushing? You definitely would like that, wouldn't you, you naughty boy?" She gave a gleeful, sadistic laugh as she returned to her all important teasing. "Rah, rah, Rae-Rae, he'll save the day-day…because he is my bae-bae."

That got a shy laugh out of him. It was wondrous to hear Rae-Rae laugh again.


	18. Chapter 18

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter contains some moderately explicit content.

One perk of being a superhero was that, despite all the strenuous work, you were essentially an international celebrity. Despite her reservations regarding her curious appearance, Beast Girl, much like the rest of her comrades, had no shortage of admirers. Certainly not as much as, say, Supergirl or Wonder Woman, but it was nice knowing that more than a few individuals found her attractive. None of the Titans had a collection of groupies as vociferous or devoted as Raven, though. A cursory glance of any internet forum with an even tangential relation to superhero discussion would reveal a swath of females of all ages collecting candid photographs and investigating into whether or not 'every' part of him was that pale. Unsurprisingly, they all found tall, dark, brooding, handsome Raven as dark, brooding, handsome and charming as she did. It was about as unpredictable as a sunrise, but there was something about the knowledge that he could have pretty much have any female on the planet with a snap of his fingers that she resented. She didn't like conceding to it...but…

Well, she wanted to crack some sort of joke about envy and her skin color.

She knew that all the evidence indicated, having all options presented before him, he would almost certainly choose her, but that mere germ of a percentage of a chance would always exist, especially considering so many of those prospective women weren't short, green skin dorks with strange superpowers, an affinity for reading comics over actual books, and small boobs.

To assuage her anxieties, Beast Girl made a plan to mark her territory.

The first step would be to wake up a bit early. Raven would definitely need a few more hours to rest.

Luckily, executing her plan was significantly easier now that Raven would sleep in his boxers and she would wear only her undergarments. It probably wasn't unusual for a boyfriend and girlfriend to do so, but considering Raven was more guarded than Fort Knox, the Batcave, and the Fortress of Solitude combined, the fact that he felt comfortable enough to wear only his boxers in bed with her made her feel sublime. Further, when they first began dating, Raven would only hold her like she was made of glass even when they were both fully clothed. Even when she had made her adoration for him more crystal clear than sunlight peeking through a window, he was still painfully shy, and she had to be quite resolute and, if she was to say so herself, _quite_ charming to get him out of his shell.

Stretching her arms upward to relieve her lethargic muscles, Beast Girl methodically moved herself so as to not wake him and planted herself on top of his crotch. She delicately ran her hands over his chest and marveled at how adorable Raven was asleep. He was always so stressed and he constantly felt an overwhelming desire to hide his perfect self from the world. More than anything, she wanted to hear him cut loose. To hear the shy, timid Raven moan and groan like a wild animal would be something like Heaven.

"Beast Girl?" He sleepily mumbled, eyes half open.

"Good morning, my love." She gripped the hem of his boxers, slowly prying them away.

Realizing what was happening, he shuffled himself awake. "What-why are you doing this?"

Perhaps it could've been attributed to his sleepiness, but Raven hadn't reflexively brought his hands down to conceal himself. To think that, years prior, he would tense up and shy away whenever she would so much as brush against him. Now, she had permission to straddle his bare hips. Here he was, naked and glorious, just for her. How far they had come in their relationship.

"Because I love you," She leaned forward, planting a gentle kiss on his lips before pressing her lips right against his ear. "And I want you to feel good."

* * *

Finally cuddled up with him again, she gave him a light poke on his forehead. "Still there?" She teasingly inquired.

That sweet, groggy smile of his was painfully adorable. "I don't know what I did to deserve you." It was a barely audible mumble.

"Don't you worry your pretty little head, Rae-Rae, you're perfect. And I woke you up early cuz I knew you'd be tuckered out and ready for more cuddles." Beast Girl nuzzled her head into Raven's shoulder after the empath slumped into his pillow.

He sighed contently. "Great idea, my squishy muffin."

"Wait, what?" Beast Girl, ready to join Raven in the land of dreams, instantly leapt to action. "What did you just call me?"

Raven was clearly attempting to shy away once again, but she trapped him by once again straddling his hips. "Nope. I'm not dropping this until you tell me what you just called me."

With a beaming Beast Girl right in his face precluding sleep, Raven resigned himself to revealing the truth. "I called you...my squishy muffin, because...well...your body is extremely soft and squishy, and you're extremely sweet, not unlike a muffin."

The combination of the revelation and Raven's tomato red cheeks made Beast Girl spring forth and wrap her arms around his neck with superhuman strength. "You're my favorite person. Ever. You're even cuter in the morning."


	19. Chapter 19

She couldn't quite place her finger on why, but Beast Girl knew something intrigued her about Raven.

It wasn't just that he was attractive. Well, obviously, he was, but it went further than that. He was fascinating to look at it. If she had the opportunity, she could stare at him for hours. The realization came to her when, during an operation that necessitated stealth, the two were forced into an enclosed space together for an extended period of time. She finally got an up-close view of his radiant, purple eyes and his surprisingly toned body. Being in immediate proximity to his rather lovely body gave her a severe case of rigor mortis along with an incredibly intense but strangely pleasant sensation in her chest. Her suspicion that she had taken an extreme liking to the empath was more or less solidified in that moment. There were two problems with the new found revelation: the first was that she was, because of her opaque anxiety, seemingly incapable of having a legitimate conversation with him that didn't involve her relentlessly teasing him and receiving snarky vitriol in turn, the second was that, as per the first, she was certain he disliked her. Still, she couldn't resist his company.

Raven often liked to read outside, most likely in an attempt to avoid her presence, but he never seemed to change his typical spot once she found out about it.

"How's it goin', Rae-Rae?" She took a seat a few inches from her target and his perfect posture.

"Raven." Her opening was met with a sardonic retort. He hadn't even bothered to look up.

"What now?"

"My name is Raven. Not Rae, not Rae-Rae, just Raven."

"Hmmmm," She deliberately pursed her lips and swung her body to and fro to consider the thought. "Ooh! I came up with the perfect nickname for you earlier today!"

Almost as soon as she finished her declaration, Raven interceded: "Don't even bother bringing up what I think you're going to bring up."

She flashed her cheshire like grin that manifested whenever his defenses came down even slightly. "I think I'm gonna start callin' you hot stuff. That cool with you, hot stuff?"

As she hoped, he brought the book closer to his face to hide his reaction. "If not for my sense of morality, you'd be in the ocean right now."

With his vision obfuscated, she shuffled closer. "You know, when we were all buddy-buddy today, I was reeeally enjoying myself. My girl parts were all like: oooh yeah, there's a guy here, all nice and close," For some reason, her voice tone became that of a stereotypical sultry, southern American accent. "And I could tell your boy parts were gettin-"

Before the thought could be finished, Beast Girl threw her hands in front of her face as he phased through the floor. Raven was gone. And Beast Girl felt like crap.

* * *

The horrific encounter with Beast Girl necessitated multiple hours of meditation. It was incredible. Years and years of practice, the ability to will interdimensional demons out of existence, all undone by that small, green pest. She drove him up a damn wall.

There had been some truth to what she said, though. Despite his objection to her existence, there was no denying that she was...fair on the eyes. Pretty, even. And being that close to her...

But now was not the time to focus on such trivialities. What was truly worth noting was that he was not completely vulnerable to her antics. After his session, he felt rejuvenated. Fresh. Ready to the face the world. He strolled through the hall, completely ready to face whatever life woul-

"Raven?"

As if by pure reflex, everything stood on end. He would recognize that voice anywhere. His assertion that he was ready to face her had proven to be nothing but platitudes. Tentatively, he turned around to find a diffident Beast Girl edging towards him, hands thrown around her back and eyes fastened securely to the floor. She was probably here to deliver an apology, hopefully.

"Can we, uh, talk for a moment?"

Taking a slight breath to quell his heart rate, he prepared a brilliant retort. "Sure." It would have to do.

"I, uh, wanted to apologize for earlier. I know that we have our little back and forth, but it was wrong of me to be so...forward. It was wrong of me to be like that, especially with you being so, well...shy. It's just that…"

She continually tapped her thumbs together, making sure to keep her focus on her hands instead of Raven. Whatever she was going to say, the wait was interminable and ready to destroy his composure. And her attempt at playing cute certainly didn't help matters.

"Just what?" It came off a bit more enthusiastic than he intended, but he had to know.

"Nothing. I just wanted to apologize. And I hope we can still, you know, hang out. And all that sort of stuff."

Something deflated in his chest. Raven knew more than anyone not to let hope worm its way into his stomach, but there existed this modicum of hope that maybe she was going to use the opportunity to spill the beans and admit that she was totally in love with him, or at least something to that effect.

Still, it was impossible for him to stay mad at her for more than a few hours, although he was certain she would find some way to aggravate him soon enough. To ease the tension, he gave her a small smile. "Yes. We can still hang out and all that sort of stuff."

She instantly shifted back into her normal, jovial attitude, replete with that classic, face-wide smile. "Great! Shall I escort you to dinner?"

"I don't recall ever needing an escort."

"You know I'll come up with any excuse to talk to you, Raven."


	20. Chapter 20

"No moving, babe."

"Can I at least have an approximation as to when you'll be waking from your slumber and relenting your suffocating grip on my neck?"

"Ten minutes."

"That's what you said five minutes ago."

"You like cuddles, right?"

A slight pause. "I suppose."

"You always make those adorable grunts when you're shuffling around, so you must."

"Five minutes. That's it."

"Seven?"

"Five."

"Six. Six more minutes of cuddles, then you'll get me food."

"You're the worst."

"Oh, poor Rae-Rae. He has to sit here and get kissed and snuggled on, and listen to how amazing he is, and how sexy he is, and how special he makes me feel, and how much I love him so hugy-bugy much, and how I wanna squeeze him all freakin' day-"

His cheeks were practically on fire. "I'll do it. Only because it's your birthday, as if I don't spoil you enough every other day of the Gregorian calendar."

"But I'm so lovable you know I'm worth it." She nuzzled her head into his shoulder to emphasize the point. There was no denying Beast Girl was right, though. "So five more minutes of cuddles, then you'll get me pancakes, then we'll take a shower."

"I suppose I'll have to venture all the way to the other side of the city to get those pancakes you're obsessed with from Winkie's Dinery…"

"And don't forget the hash browns, Jeeves."

"...and we always shower together."

"Well, yeah, but naked, wet, glistening, perfect Raven is something I can't go a day without."

Raven was clearly trying to dodge her scrutiny. "Awww, who knew a little compliment could fluster you so easily?" She knew Raven especially loved a bit of praise, and he gave it in equal measure. Before he could be pinned yet again, he levitated off the floor.

"I'm off to get your food."

"Oh! And we should totally go to the beach today. I would _love_ to see you in swim trunks, and I _know_ you wanna see what I look like in a bikini-"

Raven phased through the floor without even bothering to change clothes.

* * *

 

"This is the life, ain't it, Rae?" Having concluded the rest of their rituals, the two had located a portion of the coastline unoccupied by any other life form. She wrapped her arms around Raven's neck, partially submerged her bare feet in the sand, and let the sound of his heartbeat coupled with the soothing rhythm of the ocean transport her to a sublime state.

"I suppose I can scrape together some incidental enjoyment out of your present."

"Your grumpy, snarky facade is my present."

For several minutes, the two remained there in complete silence, the sea stretching out far past their field of vision, the movement of the ocean slowly lulling both to sleep. She was almost certain she was going to-

"Beast Girl?"

Letting out a mild yawn, she leaned up slightly to face him. "What's up, darlin'?"

There was that look on his face. She looked at Raven's face a lot, he had an _exceptionally_ nice face, and had become well acquainted with its subtle adjustments and contours. He clearly wanted to ask her something.

"Do you think...I'm, uh...well…" He bit his the lower left portion of his lip. "Do you think I'm too feminine for you?"

She reflexively squinted. Raven, with his Greek demigod body, rock-solid emotional stability, and insatiable desire to protect his comrades, was still very, very insecure about pretty much everything about himself. It was true that since the commencement of their relationship he had been more open and jovial, (not that she assumed there was a correlation between their relationship and his metamorphosis) but a large portion of Raven's entire life had been defined by a deeply ingrained sense of self-loathing. She shuffled up and cupped his cheek.

"Baby...I'm not sure I really understand. What made you think that?"

Raven seemed liked he was ready to talk, but would certainly look miserable doing so. "It's just, you know, I can't shoot fire out of my eyes, I'm not a billionaire, my superhero persona is constructed around my emotions-"

As was so often the case, Beast Girl swiftly pursed her lips and ceased Raven's from moving by crashing against his perfect mouth. His eyes fluttered to a close and the tension in his body practically melted. She wondered if maybe he was going to partially sink into the sand.

"Sandwich rolls, not gender roles, Raven," She gripped his perfect cheeks to maintain his stunned expression. "And even if you were too feminine," She emphasized the words with air quotes. "I'd still think you're perfect. You look a marble statue, you have the most ridiculous willpower, and you make me feel so safe and protected...and loved."

Now he was making a pathetic attempt to hide a smile. "Look at that little grin!" She sing songed. "And I know I can tell you how amazing you are until I run out of words," She did her best to do what she assumed was a 'sultry' voice. "But I think it's better if I show you through my actions." She intentionally bit her lip and raised her eyebrows.

The message clearly translated. "I suppose you're owed one last birthday present."

An instant later, she sprung forth, secured him to the ground by straddling his hips, and flashed her signature devilish grin. "Then how about I bury your face in my boobs to make you shut up?"

"It's a good thing I love you so much."


	21. Chapter 21

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The first part of this chapter occurs before the two enter their relationship.

As was fairly evident, Raven had an extremely solid sense of self-control.

After some time, however, he had come to accept the fact that some things were simply beyond suppression. Predictably, one of those things was Beast Girl. It got so dreadful that he honestly had no idea sometimes if she was merely going about her business or deliberately playing mind games with him.

"Need some help there?" He drolled, not looking up from his breakfast. His furtive glances revealed she was struggling mightily to reach the upper shelves without the use of her powers.

She shot him a sharp glance, scrunching her nose and squinting her eyes. "We can't all be tall, dark, and handsome." She immediately returned to her objective unabated.

For some reason, he found himself incapable of tearing his gaze away. Of course, if any of his comrades, Gabriella in particular, were in the vicinity and capable of detecting his treacherous gaze, he would be far more careful, but he had a free pass to pervert land for now. Really, though, he couldn't deny there was something extremely endearing about the way she would stand on her toes and stretch her arm out as far as possible. What he liked most was that part of her tongue would jut out ever so slightly, and-

* * *

"Will you please stop fidgeting and let me heal you?"

Minutes earlier, Beast Girl had made a small leap up and subsequently tumbled to the floor. In the ensuing chaos, she somehow cut her hand. Raven bolted over to her with speed he never knew he had. Luckily, she was fine, minus her lost balance and a minor cut on her hand, as evidenced by her rejoinder about her 'knight in shining armor' coming to the rescue. Of course, Raven immediately insisted on patching her up on the couch, but she was being less than an ideal patient.

"Oh, Raven, you are my kind of nurse."

As if on cue, he rolled his eyes and shook his head. "Just give me your hand, pest."

Still flashing that subtle, rage-inducing grin, she lifted her wrist upon his request. Given the disparity in their respective statures, her hand fit in his palm, all that he had to do now was-

" _Oh, God,"_ Raven thought to himself, searching for breath. _"Her skin is so soft. And her hands are so warm. Is she manipulating her body temperature somehow?"_

He knew that Beast Girl catching even a hint of his being flustered was enough to set her off, but he was stunned. Even this minor touch was something heavenly, and she must've had that brand of perfume on that drove him up a wall. He didn't even want to know what brand it was; it was the smell of Beast Girl, and it was truly glorious. And her soft, soft lips were effortlessly close-

"You're free to kiss the lady's hand if you'd like, my champion." She knowingly said, completely flustering Raven.

"I-I-uh, right." Before she could let out yet another comment that made his stomach sink, he channeled every ounce of willpower and focus into healing Beast Girl's cut. Truth be told, it wasn't even that severe, but he wanted to be totally sure Gabriella wouldn't get some sort of infection from it . Moments later, the cut vaporized into the ether, leaving her perfect, green skin totally unblemished. She gripped her wrist and examined her now purified skin.

"Better?" He dutifully inquired.

Now she was giving a genuine smile. "What would make it even better is a real kiss. I think you've earned it for saving the day."

Raven stood and turned away before she could see his cheeks burn. "You're fine."

* * *

It was true that Raven truly adored all the time he spent with Beast Girl, it certainly wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that it was the best part of any day, but he admitted his spunky, perpetually energetic girlfriend had a bad habit of forcing him to neglect his reading. Besides, one could easily reserve time for both a loving girlfriend and a reading, he hoped.

In a sweeping display of the universe's irony, Raven mused that he was actually making fairly decent time before his sternum was suddenly crushed and the silence of his room was pierced by his sudden "oof". Beast Girl had employed her super powers and her impeccable tactical espionage acumen to surprise him by crashing into his lap.

"Don't mind me, you can go back to whatever it was you were doin'," She was clearly far more invested in making herself comfortable than Raven's health. "Gosh, I'm so annoying aren't I? You were just mindin' your own business and in comes me. I'm kind of like a cat that just sort of burrows in next to you whether you want it to or not," After she concluded the sentence, Raven looked down to find that she had materialized into a cat. "Well, it's too late now; I'm here." She then resumed her quest to secure herself around Raven's body by burying her face in the crook of his neck.

"No more annoying than usual." Despite the sudden turn of events, Raven vowed to remain stalwart in his literary quest. Beast Girl let out a hefty sigh once she was satisfied and remain motionless on top of him, save for her rhythmic breathing and that smile.

Admittedly, having Beast Girl bound to him was rather distracting. As always, she smelled like something sublime and her lips were endlessly enticing, but her presence would not break his willpower. He kept on.

"You know," She sleepily mumbled, eyes closed. "I never did get that kiss for when you healed me hand on the couch that one time."

Raven deliberately flipped the page. "Have we not made up for it with interest?"

"Yeah, but I'd like to give you your reward right about now."

"I'm not going to stop reading."

She methodically brought her lips an inch away from his neck so he could feel her breath. "Oh, don't worry, you can keep reading, babe, buuuuuuuuuut I'm not saying you won't be distracted," With that, she began her barrage of light kisses on his neck. "Kisses on your neck- _mwa!-_ and on your throat- _mwa!_ -oh, and on your cheeks, too." Her ability to destroy his willpower had only strengthened with the growth of their relationship. Raven was still reading, but looked absolutely miserable doing so.

As Raven remained obstinate in his resolution to keep on, Beast Girl knowingly gazed up at him from her position, that sweet smile still slowly melting him. "Well, since you're being such a meanie, I guess I'm gonna climb under your shirt cuz you owe me your warmth," With supernatural speed, she sprung underneath his shirt before returning her head to its original position nuzzled against him. "Did you know that I love all of you? Not just your muscles and your big dick, I love how warm you are, I love how you pretend to not love it when I love on you, and I especially love your cute face."

Raven had quite enough. "I am not cu-"

Another swift kiss on his lips to interrupt him. "And I really love how you secretly love when I tell you about your cute face even though you're all like: I'm a big manly man, and I don't have a cute face," Her rough approximation of his voice, he felt, was incredibly inaccurate. "You have a cute face, and you love it when I compliment you on it."

Finally conceding defeat, Raven let his head fall back slightly before he regained eye contact with Beast Girl and her smug triumph.

"I knew that eventually I would get you. You just cannot resist my feminine wiles."

He gave her a soft smile. "I wouldn't have it any other way."


	22. Chapter 22

"Hey, sugarbutt, what's up?"

"Is that what you're calling me now?"

She pondered the thought for a moment as she squeezed onto Raven. "I'm cycling through nicknames, sweetie."

"Oh, joy."

"Oh, don't pout, hot stuff, you love all my goofy nicknames for you. That's one of your weaknesses."

"Weaknesses? As in plural?"

"Yes, studmuffin, of which you have several."

"Do inform me as to what these supposed 'weaknesses' are."

"Oh they are numerous, handsome; compliments, stupid pet names, cuddles, getting kissed…"

"Those _do not_ work on me."

"Oh, really? Then how do you explain how I get my way every time, cutie?"

"Because I'm a chivalrous man. And I'm not cute"

"Oh, I'm very, very much aware that you're a man, darling; a big, strong manly man," She puffed out her chest and deepened her voice in an attempt to imitate Raven's. "But that doesn't mean you're not as cute as a puppy."

"And you're as insufferable as one."

"It's okay to be needy sometimes, Rae-Rae. Besides, I like needy Rae-Rae. He's adorable. And his biggest weakness is attention," She switched to 'sultry' mode. "I bet your favorite thing in the whole wide world is when I sit here, snuggle up against you, and play with your hair while I tell you what a good boy you are."

Despite all the obvious impediments, namely Beast Girl running her fingers through his hair while relentlessly teasing him, it was time for some payback. "Then it's a good thing I know _your_ weakness."

That intrigued her. "And what would that be?"

As she concluded the thought, Raven fastened his arms around Beast Girl's stomach and, before she could make an escape, brought his hands to her stomach.

"No, get off of me!" She half-heartedly protested. "Do not tickle me, you weirdo!"

Raven's plan of attack had been a complete success, as a brief bit of tickling was enough to bring out the reaction he hoped. Truthfully, he didn't know if Beast Girl was actually vulnerable to being tickled, but the evidence strongly suggested as much. It would certainly be important to remember.

Still firmly gripping onto her after having achieved victory, she slumped into him. "Okay, okay, you win this time. But it's so unfair! You like all those things and I hate getting tickled!"

He returned the favor and ran his fingers through her hair. "Well, you'll be sure to keep it in mind next time you think of branding me with another one of your obnoxious nicknames, babe."

She instantly whipped around, beaming. "Finally!" She then crashed her lips against his. "Buuuuut, I guess from now on I'm just gonna have to be quiet, since I can't _not_ call you something stupid. I could just be soft and squishy and warm and we could just be silent, how 'bout that? Would you like it if I just shut up?"

That elicited a genuine laugh from him. "I most certainly would not like that."

She kissed him again. "That's what I thought."


	23. Chapter 23

"What's your favorite food?"

"Pancakes."

"Do you actually like watching Voltron with me?"

"It's tolerable."

"I think we should let the patient get some rest, BG."

"But this is so much fun! What's your favorite Disney movie?"

"That's enough, Beast Girl," Cyborg was clearly amused by Beast Girl's interrogation. It appeared as if Raven had been hit with some variety of truth serum, and his normally impeccably guarded bundle of secrets was free for prodding and poking at Beast Girl's hands. She was taking full advantage of the opportunity. "You've torture him enough as is."

She let out a resigned sigh. "Fiiiiiiiiiiiiine. He does need his beauty sleep." She made her way to the exit as Cyborg stepped out, only to make an instant one-eighty as soon as he was out of range. She scooted right up against Raven and whispered into his ear.

"What do you think of Beast Girl?"

The _thumpthump_ of her heart became more intense as Raven was clearly taking his sweet time in providing an answer to her query.

"Beeeeeast Girl," The silence made Beast Girl want to smack him square in the jaw. "I've struggled to think of how to say it for quite some time now."

" _Jackpot!_ " The words nearly escaped her person. _"Wait, shit! I don't know if I'm gonna like this, but I gotta know!"_

"Beast Girl...she's…she's…"

"Annoying? A pest? A blight on human existe-"

"...cute."

She didn't know if she was going to cry every last bit of hydration out of her being or die of laughter.

"R-really?" She found herself tripping over her words in the presence of Raven, which really wasn't that uncommon of an experience. "You think I'm...cute?"

"I just want to hug her and tell her how…"

"What?"

Whatever he was going to say was lost to eternity as Raven swiftly fell into a deep sleep. Beast Girl clenched her fists, enraged, but swiftly freed them once she recalled that _Raven_ just called her _cute._ She swiftly hustled to the exit, being sure to shut the door behind her,

"He thinks I'm cute!" She pumped her fist at the ground before jumping up in excitement. "Raven thinks I'm cute!" Her jovial nature prompted her to do a quick, impromptu dance celebrating the fact that Raven found her appealing.

* * *

"Don't pout, Rae, my cooking is excellent," He clearly was not being persuaded into Beast Girl making pancakes for the two of them, given how poorly her last expeditions into chef-hood went. "Maybe I'll convince you with a hug," She sighed contently as she wrapped her arms around Raven's sturdy body. "And I knoooooow you like pancakes, so whadya have to lose?"

He let out a sigh of resignation. "Fine."

"Look at that, my hug worked! My hugs always work on you."

"Silence."

"But I'm so cute!"

"Enough, for the sake of my sanity."

"Aww, but I am! You even told me so." She smugly sing-songed.

"And when did this occur?"

Beast Girl let out a wicked laugh as she brought back the visual of her memory. "Do you remember that time we fought Doctor Kill-ton, and you accidentally stumbled into that weird mist?"

"Yes?" He was skeptical, but he didn't completely dismissed her.

"Wellllll, you completely lost your secret filter, so I asked what you thought of me, and you were all like: Oh, I love Beast Girl. She's so sweet and perfect and cute," She liked imitating Raven's deep monotone quite a bit. "I love her so much."

Raven clearly had some recollection of the event, as he was blushing furiously. "I did no such thing, stop exaggerating."

She burst out laughing at his reaction. "Okay, okay, maybe it wasn't _exactly_ like that, but you _did_ say you I was cute, and you said it with such passion and such sweetness, I replayed the clip of you saying it countless times."

He was still trying to hash out a retort despite his burning face. "You should be thanking me."

That was true. "Well, we all wanna be told we're cute. You're cute."

"I am most certainly not."

She yet again threw herself around Raven. "Yeah you are. You're sweet, adorable, cute, and the fact that you try to deny makes you even cuter."


End file.
